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Readability, understandability, and quality of retinopathy of prematurity information on the web
Fatma Hilal Yılmaz1, Mahmut Sami Tutar2, Derya Arslan3
1Department of Neonatology, Dr. Ali Kemal Belviranli Hospital for Obstetrics and Pediatrics, Konya, Turkey.
Insights
Online information on retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) for parents has high understandability but poor readability and quality. Improving the written content on ROP websites is crucial for better patient education.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Medical Informatics
- Health Communication
Background:
- Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a significant cause of visual impairment in premature infants.
- Parents rely on online resources for information about ROP, necessitating an evaluation of these materials.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the readability, understandability, and information quality of online content regarding retinopathy of prematurity.
- To identify areas for improvement in web-based patient education materials for ROP.
Main Methods:
- A systematic search for "retinopathy of prematurity" was conducted on Google, identifying 220 websites.
- Readability was assessed using multiple standardized scores (e.g., Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level).
- Understandability was measured using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool, and quality was evaluated using Health in Net code and JAMA benchmarks.
Main Results:
- Sixty-four websites met the inclusion criteria.
- Average readability scores indicated a high school reading level, with Flesch Reading Ease averaging 50.1.
- While understandability scores were high (76.9 ± 15.2), the overall quality of information, assessed by JAMA benchmarks, was rated as poor (2.27 ± 1.14).
Conclusions:
- Websites providing information on retinopathy of prematurity demonstrate high understandability for parents.
- However, the readability and overall quality of the written content require significant improvement.
- Enhancing online ROP resources is essential for effective parental comprehension and decision-making.
Background:
The purpose of this study is to assess the readability, understandability, and quality of information on retinopathy of prematurity presented at websites frequently visited by parents.
Methods:
A total of 220 websites were assessed, which were recruited by searching for "retinopathy of prematurity" at the Google search engine. The readability of each web page was assessed by Flesch Reading Ease Score, Gobbledygook's Gunning Frequency, Flesch Kincaid Grade Level, Coleman Liau score, The Simple Measure of Gobbledygook, Fry Graph Readability Formula, and Automated readability score. The understandability of the web pages included in the study was measured by using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool. Quality was evaluated using Health in Net code and JAMA. The ALEXA traffic tool was used to reference the domains' popularity and visibility.
Results:
Sixty-four websites were included to the study. The average Flesch Reading Ease Score was 50.1 ± 11.4, Gunning Frequency of Gobbledygook level was 13.4 ± 2.5, The Flesch-Kincaid Grade level was 10.7 ± 2.2, Coleman Liau level was 10.8 ± 1.7, Simple Measure of Gobbledygook level was 10.0 ± 1.9, and Fry Graph Readability Formula 11.9 ± 2.7, Automated readability score 10.4 ± 2.5. The average understandability score for all website-based patient education materials was 76.9 ± 15.2. Total JAMA Benchmark score is 2.27 ± 1.14 (range from 1 to 4). The quality of information at most websites were determined by our chosen assessments to not to be good.
Conclusion:
Websites addressed to parents for retinopathy of prematurity had found to have high understandability. It was concluded based on this study that readability and quality of presented written materials at online sources need to be improved.
